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4 Everton Park
Singapore, 080004
Singapore

+65 6220 2330

A coffee bar and roastery driven by our beliefs to foster direct, transparent and sustainable relationships with our coffee producers, so as to help us to source, roast and brew some of the most amazing coffees from around the world, to the best we think they should taste and share them with you.

Journal

One less plastic straw

Nylon Coffee Roasters


Ice coffees

When we first opened our doors to sell coffee beans 6 years back, we reused the plastic bags that held cartons of milk we bought from the supermarkets a day earlier. Over the years, we have resisted the urge to adopt what we consider as "unnecessary branding" that can result in more waste to our bins and landfills, eg. logo stickers for cups, customised bags for purchased items or printing of receipts on checkout. Thanks to our lovely friends and customers who have donated to us their excess and unused bags, we have managed to avoid thousands of packaging waste by reusing clean plastic and paper bags. Since day 1, we have always encouraged our customers to have their coffees in the shop rather than doing take-aways to help reduce that paper or plastic cup waste. We have been giving BYO discounts and encouraged our customers to adopt a tree (or start with a plant). These small actions have set the tone in how we have been running the business since the beginning - in a sustainable way that will leave as little footprint as possible.  

Plastic straws have been ubiquitous in most of our daily lives and you would be amazed by the sheer number that are disposed off, many of which end up in our drains, canals and eventually the oceans. It was a 8 minute video of the excruciating pain suffered by a sea turtle with a plastic straw stuck up its nostrils that really made us sit up and decide that we have to do something. During the past 2 months, we have been experimenting with a bunch of plastic straw alternatives with our coffees to understand their impact on taste and the perception of our customers towards them. We have conducted trials using both metal and bamboo straws with our iced coffees and obtained feedback from some regular customers to ensure that the coffee experience is not in any way compromised. In the process, we actually felt that the enjoyment levels of our coffees might even increase with the use of the metal straw! Unfortunately we had to drop the option of using bamboo due to the taste compromise even though it was a much better option in terms of being a product sourced directly from nature. With the positive and encouraging feedback, we implemented a system to ensure that the metal straws can be cleaned properly in the same way as our cups. Maintaining our hygiene standards is also utmost important for us as we consider the alternative straw options.

Metal straws alternative

This weekend, we hope to do our part by actively replacing the plastic straws for all our ice coffees that are consumed in the shop with a metal straw alternative. As part of the change, our team will explain to you and seek your understanding to this change. For anyone who might not be comfortable with using the metal straws, we will still offer the plastic straws with your ice drinks but we do hope you might change your mind on your next visit. We estimate that we should be able to save a few hundreds of straws a month from this switch and prevent them from going into the landfills or worse, our oceans. Unfortunately for takeaway iced coffees, we will have to continue with the plastic straws unless you have your own or indicate otherwise. In the near future, we will start retailing the metal straws to further encourage others to contribute to this cause of reducing plastic waste. For those interested, stay tuned to our social media updates.

We have been blessed with a supportive community over the past 6 years who have made Nylon a part of their daily lives. We hope our love for the environment can be shared amongst more people. Calling out to our friends (One Man Coffee are also launching this initiative) from cafes and restaurants, join in this movement soon!

#onelessplasticstraw

Post competition thoughts

Nylon Coffee Roasters


It’s been more than 3 weeks after the national coffee competitions. After all the intensive training, late nights, endless roasting and adrenaline rush, life is almost back to normal and we are on the road now in a tiny town, called Ocotal, in the Nueva Segovia region of Nicaragua. As we slow down our pace, we reflect back on what we did this year for the Brewers Cup and how we could have done better and what did we achieve post comp. For those who did not have a chance to head down to MBS to catch the performance, we presented a topic this year on ‘Sustainability’. It’s a big word and encompasses many facets of what we do and how we live. When applied to coffee, our thoughts are tied to how we as coffee buyers, roasters, baristas can help to maintain sustainability in specialty coffee.

In the recent years, we have read that with climate change, growing coffee is getting a lot more challenging and less arable land is suitable for coffee production due to increasing temperatures. Coffee diseases are harder to control, threatening many producers and leading many to abandon their farms, or changing to grow other crops. At the same time, coffee competitions around the world have also put the spotlight on a few rock star coffee producers. These producers do an excellent job in growing high quality in some rarer varieties and invest in special processing methods to alter the cup profile. No doubt they are mainly microlots of Geishas grown in Panama or in a village within Ethiopia.

Looking at the trend of past champions in coffee competitions, one would think that to increase the chances of winning, one would probably have to compete with a Gesha variety from one of the famous producers. This would also mean one has to be prepared to pay a very high price to secure a small quantity of these micro or even nano lots. But does rarity and high prices definitely translate to high quality? The measure of quality can be quite subjective. The audience and people who read about these winning coffees might interpret that these rare and expensive represent the world of good specialty coffees. Unconsciously, we as an industry might end up creating a ‘bubble’ effect, inflating prices for these rare and exclusive coffees. To us, this is a risk as we end up encouraging producers to start growing certain varieties or place all their limited resources on these varieties despite their land is not suitable for growing them. Further, there is a potential risk that these varieties tend to be less disease-resistant. Actions as such make coffee farming less sustainable. Geshas can taste great if grown in the right climate, suitable terroir and processed well, but growing it indiscriminately might have detrimental effect in terms of cup quality and yield. It is also a concern when production is overly concentrated in certain varieties as less diversity in the genetic pool might lead to higher risk of widespread diseases that attack a certain variety.

Hence for the Brewers Cup, we were adamant that thou will not compete with a Gesha variety. This is not a demonstration of negativity against this variety but rather a message that we would like to bring across to many that we should not be blindly chasing after that rare and exclusive coffee variety, leading coffee producers to grow something which might not be sustainable for them in the long run. Some producers, especially the smaller ones tend to be more focused on short term gains, and looking at how crazy prices can be for Geshas, it will only drive them to plant more of this unconventional variety at the expense of something which might be more suitable for their land in the long run. 

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On the other hand, we are very happy that we managed to clinch 2nd place in the Brewers Cup competition. It was the fruit of the many hours of hard work of the team. We are even more thrilled that our barista Deborah chose an Ethiopian coffee, Kayo Natural, from our regular coffee offering, which she did amazingly well to get very high scores. We also roasted for our friend, Mervin, from One Man Coffee, using a Colombian Castillo variety from a very young producer, Hujo Trujillo, whom we visited last year. Mervin definitely charmed the judges on his way to a final 4th placing. These results have definitely encouraged us that we might be making some inroads to our goal. We are comforted knowing our message has reached some individuals, making them think more about the current state of specialty coffee. Are we, as part of the specialty coffee chain, doing our part in sustainability, or are we moving further away from it?

Coffee for thought...

News from the source: Colombia 2017

Nylon Coffee Roasters


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Sourcing for coffees in this vast country is always an enjoyable experience despite the long and arduous flights that amount to 3 days stuck in planes and airports. This year, we did a pit stop in Frankfurt en route to Bogota. During the layover, we managed to do a quick cafe hop in this German capital to check out some local roasters. Similar to other European cities, specialty coffee is growing here in Germany. We managed to grab some caffeine fix at The Brewing Society, Hoppenworth & Ploch, as well as Bruhmrkt. As roasters, we are always curious to try out other international roasters, especially at times when we happen to have roasted the same coffee. It gives us an insight to the different approaches each roaster would have on a particular green coffee. The caffeine fueled us up for the next 12 hour leg to Bogota. (*Note: This is a long post, so fuel up!)

Having visited Colombia the past 4 years, Bogota has always been a transit stop where we hop on to a connecting flight to Popayan. We had never stepped out of the airport until this year, when we intentionally planned a day trip into the city. The specialty coffee scene seems to growing rapidly in this bustling capital of the 3rd largest coffee producer in the world. Usually when we travel to coffee origins, it is hard to find a decent cup of coffee, which is ironical as these countries produce amazing coffees which are exported around the world. We did our homework and visited these cafes which roast their own beans. The cafe scene is vibrant and we tasted some delicious brews at Cafe 18. While many locals still frequent the big chains, like Juan Valdez, there is a trend of more specialty-focused cafes as the demand for better coffee increases.

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This year, our trip was highlighted by a special event, which was the wedding of our good friends, Jairo and Juliana. Jairo Ruiz, one of the co-founders of Banexport has been a dear friend since we started sourcing from Colombia. We are extremely honoured to have been part of their special day. We had no idea what to expect in a Colombian wedding, except there will be plenty of booze and salsa. It was one wedding to remember, never had we attended a matrimonial ceremony with so much music, dancing, karaoke, aguardiente (anise-flavoured liquor) and fireworks on the dance floor!

After a heavy night of boogie that lasted into the wee hours, we took the following day off to give ourselves and everybody some well-needed rest. The following day, we started with 2 rounds of cupping at Banexport's office to have a preview of the new harvest from Cauca before heading out to visit some producers in the surrounding towns within Cauca. Over the years, Banexport has worked with countless small producers, helping many to improve the coffee quality. They spend valuable resources, both financial and time, to form a community of like-minded small producers, who want to make a sustainable living out of growing better coffee. The goal is simple, better coffee = better prices = better livelihood and eventually a brighter future for the producers.

With Aldemar (left),  Hugo Trujillo (rightmost) and his family.

With Aldemar (left),  Hugo Trujillo (rightmost) and his family.

One of them is Hugo Trujillo. His farm, named Finca Las Orquideas, is situated in Caldono. The farm is about 3 hectares located about 1500 metres in altitude where Hugo is growing Castillo, Colombian varietal and Yellow Colombian varietal. Hugo is currently selling his coffees to cooperatives and some to Banexport. It is unusual to meet a producer less than 30 years old. While he is young, Hugo has grand ambitions. He has been working with Banexport to improve on his coffee quality. With some technical advice from Banexport, Hugo experimented with the way he processes his coffee after picking. He has been doing double fermentation in his wet mill for some of the micro-lots, meaning fermentation in a "hopper" (tolva), then in a tank.  This processing method is currently being implemented by some small producers at lower altitudes. According to Banexport, the cupping scores have been generally 1-2 points higher compared with the traditional fermentation method.

Walking the farm, La Esperanza with Cenaida Flor and Aldemar.

Walking the farm, La Esperanza with Cenaida Flor and Aldemar.

The second producer we visited was Señora Cenaida Flor, whose farm is called La Esperanza, located in the town of Santa Barbara in Cauca. Cenaida is new to specialty coffee, but we can see there is much potential. The coffee trees are spaciously planted in neat rows. She grows Castillo and Colombian, and has recently acquired some seeds of Maragogype from a friend. She will experiment growing this "elephant bean" varietal which can potentially increase her income in future years if this project becomes successful. From the conversation, we understand that Cenaida is keen to pursue growing more specialty coffee (micro-lots) in her farm, but she will need the support from Banexport in providing technical advice. It is encouraging to see her determination in improving the quality of her coffees and we hope she will persevere to make it happen.

With Martha and Luis Alberto at El Naranjal.

With Martha and Luis Alberto at El Naranjal.

The last producer that we visited is El Naranjal, a farm that came in #10 in the Best Cup Cauca 2016. It was also the lot that we successfully bid and won, allowing us to share the fruits of Martha and her husband, Luis Alberto. After a quick tour around the farm and understanding the processing of the harvests, we presented the couple with a bag of their coffee which we roasted to share with them. The coffee has finally come one complete circle after they were grown, picked, processed in the farm and shipped out to us in Singapore, we were able to roast this awesome coffee and share them with our customers around the region, and they can also get to taste the fruits of their labour. It was quite a heartwarming moment..

We got to know a new friend during this trip, Aldemar Sarasti. Aldemar has been working with Banexport for 1 year and his role is to provide technical advice to the small producers. He is extremely knowledgeable as we hear him dispense information about the type of fertilizers, the type or nutrients the plants would need, and what trees/alternative crops the producers can grow to help maintain the farm. He had been most patient in driving us around, acting as our local guide. We departed Popayan and headed towards another coffee department of Huila. Driving across the Purace National Park, we were occasionally hypnotised by the landscape in this vast country. It was almost a 6 hour journey before we reached Pitalito, located in the south of the Huila department.

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This visit to Huila was much anticipated because we had planned to meet Elkin Guzman from Finca El Mirador. We have been corresponding with Elkin via email and Whatsapp when we wanted to understand more about the techniques involved in the way he manages his family farm. Elkin is a young producer, who studied agricultural engineering in Popayan at the university of Cauca. He has been instrumental in the development work within the farm. 6 years ago, he started to collaborate with Banexport in developing new processing methods to improve the cup quality. With Banexport's support Elkin uses Finca El Mirador as a test bed to try out different approaches to cultivation, harvesting and processing. He had also joined the Banexport team as an agricultural engineer so that he can help other producers in the region with his experience.

Elkin Guzman explaining why he decided on the varietals to plant in his farm.

Elkin Guzman explaining why he decided on the varietals to plant in his farm.

After a quick cupping at the Banexport's office/coffee lab,  we set off to Finca El Mirador. Last year, we won a small lot in a silent auction from this farm and we were naturally very excited to finally visit. At the farm, we met Elkin's mother, Señora Fanny Vargas. While Elkin manages most of the cultivation, harvesting and processing work at the farm, Fanny oversees the quality control within the wet mill (beneficio) and the drying of the coffees. Elkin gave us a brief overview of the farm. Currently, he grows Caturra, Castillo, Colombian, Catiope, Mokka, Tabi, Bourbon and Typica with some orange Bourbon in the pipeline. Most of the coffees are processed as honey or natural, with a small portion of washed processed. Cherries are harvested when the Brix level is at least 20 degrees. Understanding the genetics of the differental varietals have helped Elkin to decide on which fermentation methods to use for each varietal. For example, the fermentation process for Caturra and Bourbon is different compared to the Castillo, Colombian, Tabi. For the former, he does dry fermentation with Day 1's picking of the coffee cherries, then he adds Day 2's picking, so this is one form of "double fermentation". Elkin explains that the micro-organism is more active on the 2nd day, so less time is required to ferment Day 2's pickings. The pH level and Brix of the dry fermented coffee is measured to decide when to send the coffees for washing. For some other varietals like Castillo, Colombian and Tabi, there is another form of double fermentation which involves 2 stages: 1st stage in a tolva ("hopper") and 2nd stage in fermentation tanks (similar to what we saw in Cauca at Finca Las Orquideas). Elkin explained that such varietals have lower sugar content genetically, so fermenting in a funnel-shape tolva helps to increase fermentation and hence higher sweetness. The length of the fermentation depends on the environment and temperature. There was also some insights to how he is experimenting with carbonic maseration and freezer method of fermentation. Such methods are at the request of some of his clients who are looking to achieve a certain cup profile with these experimental methods.

Sorting out the floaters as the first level of sorting through the harvests.

Sorting out the floaters as the first level of sorting through the harvests.

After explaining in-depth the different fermentation techniques, Elkin then led us to where he dries the parchment. There are 5 types of drying methods used in Fincal El Mirador:

  1. Traditional: plastic, transparent roof, with 2 layers of drying beds; minimal ventilation resulting in high humidity and temperature,
  2. Open ventilated beds without plastic roof; lower temperature,
  3. Similar to 1) but with blue coloured roofs and 2 layers drying beds; cooler temperature than (1),
  4. African raised beds in shade and
  5. Traditional plastic cover with some ventilation, single layer drying bed (biggest area for bigger quantity coffee); parchment are moved every hour.
Raking the naturals every half hour is necessary for a very even drying.

Raking the naturals every half hour is necessary for a very even drying.

Elkin has one of the cleanest drying beds we have seen as we were pleasantly impressed by how his workers change to clean slippers before stepping onto the drying beds to rake the parchment.

Drying naturals at El Mirador

Drying naturals at El Mirador

For natural processed coffees, the coffees are spread out in a thin layer first, then when it drops to a certain moisture level, the coffees are moved closer together to form a small heap. This is to reduce the rate of loss of moisture which protects the cell structure when drying. Natural coffees usually takes about 25-35 days to dry fully. As they are more difficult to mill, so Elkin is trying a modified way of drying, which involves 2 stages: drying the naturals as usual naturals to a certain moisture level, afterwhich the beans are soaked in water for it to expand a little. The coffee cherries are then depulped and dried again. This method leads to a cup that taste like a natural processed, but benefits from easier milling.

With Fanny and Elkin at their farm.

With Fanny and Elkin at their farm.

We learnt so much from Elkin as he walked us through his farm and his beneficio. As the whole session was explained in Spanish, we probably only absorbed half of the knowledge he was sharing, but nonetheless, it was extremely educational and valuable. Our visit ended with a simple home-cooked lunch together with Fanny. This is true Colombian hospitality! We chatted more over lunch, sharing some history and background about Singapore and Nylon. While Finca El Mirador receives many international visitors, we're pretty sure we are the 1st Singaporeans here....

We concluded the visit by expressing our gratitude to Fanny and Elkin with a bag of Finca El Mirador coffee roasted by us. It was about 1 year ago when we first got to taste coffee from this farm and we are glad we finally met the wonderful people behind this beautiful coffee.

Cupping at the Banexport lab in Huila.

Cupping at the Banexport lab in Huila.

We returned to Pitalito and did another few rounds of cupping. The harvest period in Huila is different from Cauca, with the main harvest starting in October and ending in December. There are parts of Huila with mitacas (small harvest), and we had a preview of those available. Coffees from Huila seem to be more diverse in varietals compared to Cauca. We were excited to try some varietals which are new to us, such as Tabi and Ombligon. Tabi is a hybrid variety obtained by crossing Typica, Bourbon and Timor Hybrid. It was developed by Colombia’s Coffee Research Institute (CENICAFE). Ombligon, according to Elkin, is a mutation of the Colombian varietal. The trees grow well at high altitudes and is quite productive. The cherries are bigger in size compared to Colombians, with pointed ends. We also cupped samples from Finca El Mirador which included some naturals and honey-processed coffees. After shortlisting some potential lots,  it was time to head back to Popayan. 

Road to El Mirador.

Road to El Mirador.

During the journey back, we chatted with Aldemar about his work at Banexport and his aspiration of owning a farm like Finca El Mirador in future. Coffee farming is a long term commitment and with threats of climate change, there would be challenges and uncertainties for future coffee growers. We hope that there will be a pool of the younger generation of coffee producers to continue with cultivating specialty coffee within the country. In order to encourage them to carry on with coffee farming, the industry has to provide the right financial incentives and technical support as well as know-how to drive it forward.

Arriving back in Popayan, we did a final day of cupping at Banexport for coffees from Cauca. Slurping through all the samples, we picked out a few that caught our attention. Besides finding the coffees we like, we also spend time catching up with our friends at Banexport about updates on recent development and what is in their pipeline. For us, this form of in-person communication is the most effective way to maintain and strengthen relationships with partners. It is the reason why we continue to make time to travel the distance. It's not only for coffee, it is the connection with these incredible individuals that builds the foundation of what we do.

It was another amazing trip to Colombia. Lovely coffees, great food, incredible people. We will be looking forward to the fresh crops of Colombians end of the year.

Viva Colombia!

#nylontravels

New coffees, new relationship

Nylon Coffee Roasters


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As we enter the 4th quarter of 2017, we are thrilled to roll out 2 new coffees from Nicaragua through a new relationship with the Peralta family. We got to know Peralta Coffees through a roaster friend, who has been buying from them for a few years. The Peralta Family coffee growing history goes back to the beginning of the 20th century; but it was until 2008 that they started focusing on developing new ways to market their coffees to international specialty coffee markets. Peralta currently processes and exports all of their production to specialty markets around the world and also provide financing, milling, quality control, export and consulting services to other small and medium farms and cooperatives from different regions of Nicaragua. Currently they have 7 farms located on the Dipilto and Jalapa mountain range.

We have 2 new coffees from the Peralta family. First is a washed Java varietal from Finca El Bosque ("the forest" in Spanish). It is a farm located in the municipal of San Fernando in the Nueva Segovia region, owned by Julio Peralta since 1991. The farm lies on the mountainous slopes in the Nueva Segovia region on the border of Honduras, providing spectacular views of the surrounding forests and mountains. The environment is incredibly wild and coffee grows densely amongst shade trees of banana and inga. El Bosque produces coffee at altitudes of between 1250 to 1560 meters above sea level and has an annual rainfall of approximately 1800 millimeters. These factors, along with Julio’s inherited passion and dedication for growing exceptional coffee, combine to produce lively, bright and complex flavour nuances in the cup. Javier Antonia Mayorquin is the manager of Finca El Bosque and of the 140 hectares that make up El Bosque, only 30 of them are allocated for coffee production. The rest of the land has been set aside for the growth of different varieties of pine and oak, and it is this factor along with a clear commitment to sustainable environmental practice that has resulted in Rainforest Alliance certification for El Bosque. All power on the farm is provided by solar panels and a rainwater harvesting tank which produces hydroelectricity.

Ripe cherries are handpicked and sorted between December and March. There is a wet mill on the farm. The selected cherries are then pulped in a Penagos eco-pulper, the water is recycled and reused in this process before entering oxidation ponds to remove by-products. For this Java lot, the washed beans were taken to the nearby mill of San Ignacio where they were dried on raised beds for 11 days. The coffees are regularly turned by rake to ensure good, even drying.

We love how clean and sweet the Java is tasting. When hot, the cup highlights cantaloupe-like fruit tones, but as it cools, mandarin oranges comes through along with its candy floss/marshmallow-like sweetness. This coffee exhibits subtle citric acidity and floral undertones, great for pour-overs.

Farm: Finca El Bosque
Producer: Julio Peralta
Farm Manager: Javier Antonia Mayorquin
Region: Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua
Dry mill: San Ignacio
Varietal: Java
Processing: Washed

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The second coffee we purchased from the Peralta family is from Finca Santa Maria de Lourdes. Situated in the same region as Finca El Bosque,  the 50 hectares of natural mountainous forest has been under the ownership of Octavio Peralta since 1970, though for many years the area was used as war land during the Sandinista uprising and was heavily mined. The UN cleared the area of mines in the late 1980’s and Octavio began to restore exceptional coffee production to this relatively wild area in 1994. Octavio has been dedicated to this cause as well as preserving the natural habitat which is recognized as a main factor in the production of his fantastic coffee. Of the 80 hectares of available arable land, 40 have been set aside for the sole purpose of maintaining and improving the natural habitat. The climate at Santa Maria de Lourdes is much more humid which means the coffee trees are more sparsely planted to ensure everything is properly aerated. The farm has achieved Rainforest Alliance Certification in recognition of this decision and contributes towards the on-going conservation of the surrounding area. There is also a well equipped kitchen which caters for the 60 permanent workers and 150 pickers during the harvest. The general manager is Gladys Gutierrez who oversees the running and upkeep of the farm and is instrumental in the production of high quality coffee.

The lot we chose from Finca Santa Maria de Lourdes is a yellow honey processed Catuai. The degree of "honey" depends on the amount of mucilage left on the parchment after being passed through a mechanical demucilaginator, so a white/yellow honey would have the least amount of mucilage left on the parchment, compared to red or black honey. Honey-processed coffees generally take longer to dry. For this lot, it was dried over 16 days on raised beds.

When we cupped this coffee earlier this year, we felt it would work great for espresso. Its soft and gentle acidity and medium body is complemented beautifully by the rounded mouthfeel from the cup. Indeed, this coffee turned out to be really enjoyable. There is a tropical fruit tone at the front, like starfruits, and the back is coated with hazelnuts and milk chocolate. Very balanced and pleasant for those looking for a comforting espresso.

Farm: Finca Santa Maria de Lourdes
Region: Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua
Producer: Octavio Peralta
Farm Manager: Gladys Gutierrez
Dry mill: San Ignacio
Varietal: Catuai
Processing: Yellow Honey

Both coffees are available in store and online now. Kick off October with some fresh coffees from Nicaragua!

Fresh crops from El Salvador

Nylon Coffee Roasters


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As we celebrate the nation's 52nd birthday, we are delighted to roll out 2 new coffees from our long time favourite producers in a country that has been close to heart. El Salvador was the first country which gave us a big leap in confidence when we start importing coffees directly from origins. The producers whom we have been fortunate to meet back in 2012/3 have been supporting us throughout our early years. Now that Nylon is 5 years old, we are glad we maintained this meaningful relationship with our friends in El Salvador. 

Finca Santa Petrona, is located around the Santa Ana volcano in the western part of El Salvador. Growing primarily the Red Bourbon varietal (80%), there is also a small amount of Pacas and Pacamara. Finca Santa Petrona has been recognised as one of the farms in Santa Ana that produces excellent coffees. The success of the farm is a result of its core values: respect to the workers and to the local communities as well as maintaining good harmony with the environment. The coffee from Santa Petrona is processed at Beneficio Tuxpal, which is managed by Federico Pacas, with the help of his siblings. Beneficio Tuxpal is well-organised, clean and professionally managed. Though this wet/dry mill is already quite impressive, Federico has been investing in raised bed drying and shade-drying. The coffee which we have selected from this year's harvest is a black-honey processed lot with 85%-90% mucilage left on the bean before drying on raised beds for 18 days. We selected this lot for its pleasing grapes and dried raisins notes, which together with the dark chocolate finish and milky texture, creates a fruity chocolate bar experience.

Farm: Finca Santa Petrona
Producer: Pacas Diaz family
Region: Santa Ana, El Salvador
Wet/Dry mill: Beneficio Tuxpal
Varietal: Red Bourbon
Altitude: 1450 masl
Processing: Black honey process; dried on raised beds for 18 days

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The other new coffee we have started roasting recently is from another well-known producer with almost celebrity like status, Mr Gilberto Baraona. Over the years, we have been following Gilberto in his pursuit towards better quality. He has invested in securing better water source for his farm in Usulutan, and also put in more resources to build drying beds as the demand for his honey and natural processed coffees increases over the years. We decided on a honey-processed lot this year which exhibited juicy fruit tones and good sweetness when we first cupped the samples. This honey-processed lot meant that after the skin has been removed from the coffee cherries, 100% of the mucilage is left on the bean before sending off to dry on raised beds. We're tasting a mix of red plums and red grapes, coupled with brown sugar sweetness and a chocolate finish. This is a coffee that would be great for any time of the day. Comforting with just the right amount of fruit tones that is balanced out by the sweetness and body.

Farm: Finca Los Pirineos
Producer: Mr Gilberto Baraona
Region: Tecapa-Chinameca, Usulutan, El Salvador
Varietal: Pacamara
Altitude: 1480 masl
Processing: Honey process; dried on raised beds for 20-22 days.

Both coffees are available on our webshop.